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Helpless Laughter
Helpless Laughter is an episode from the original series of ThunderCats. Written by Matthew Malach, it originally aired on September 18, 1989. Summary Panthro, Snarf, and later even Mumm-Ra fall prey to the waters of the Swamp of the Laughing Lillypads, which unless cured, will cause them to laugh until they die. Story The ThunderCats all have an uneasy feeling due to the eerie quietness that has befallen New Thundera. Even Mumm-Ra in his pyramid senses the evil in the air. The Ancient Spirits of Evil then rumble to life. In their thundering voice they explain that the five Moons of Plun-Darr will come between Third Earth and New Thundera. This harmonic convergence will result in a very severe drought on New Thundera that will wipe out all life, except for Mumm-Ra’s. The evil mummy is delighted at the thought of finally being rid of the ThunderCats. The spirits’ predictions are spot on as the onset of the drought quickly results in all the water in the Dreary Canal and other water bodies to dematerialize. Even the water in the New Cats Lair’s storage disappears. The only water body which has not dried out is the Swamp of the Laughing Lily Pads, so Panthro and Snarf head there in the ThunderTank. Along the way they come under attack from Eezuka, the flying serpent of Dreary Canal. While trying to avoid the beast, the tank plunges straight into the swamp and its water causes both the Cats to laugh uncontrollably. Eezuka then attacks the Cats Lair, covering the entire fortress with webbing, including the cannons. Bengali tries to contact Panthro but he and Snarf are so much under the laughing influence of the swamp’s water that they are helpless. Lion-O decides to face Eezuka on open ground and tries to ward off the beasts’ attacks outside the lair. In the scuffle, the last barrel of water that the ThunderCats had is destroyed, spilling all the water. Lion-O senses that Eezuka means them no harm and is only searching for water. His feelings are confirmed by Jaga who appears at that moment and reminds Lion-O to use not only his knowledge, resources, and technology, but also the Eye of Thundera in order to combat the drought. Lion-O then points the Sword of Omens to the heavens and causes the clouds to produce rain, which calms Eezuka and he flies away. Lion-O and Bengali then pilot the ThunderStrike to the Caverns of Cold. Once there, they use the vehicle’s powerful laser cannon to melt some of the glaciers and produce water to fill the Dreary Canal. Observing the proceedings in his cauldron, Mumm-Ra flies to the Caverns of Cold to disrupt the ThunderCats’ plans. He fires a bolt of energy at the ThunderStrike’s laser cannon, causing it to jam and fire haphazardly. This causes a lot of the ice to melt, producing a massive tidal wave. The strong flood water breaks the ice cliff on which Lion-O and Bengali were standing, causing the two to fall into the water. Mumm-Ra attacks the two but they manage to hold him off for long enough to allow Lion-O to summon the other ThunderCats. The flood waters reach all the way to the Swamp of the Laughing Lily Pads and wash Panthro and Snarf free from the effects of the swamp water. The two then rush to Lion-O’s location and blast Mumm-Ra with swamp water that had filled the ThunderTank’s cannons. Laughing uncontrollably, Mumm-Ra falls into the water is carried away by the rapids. Characters Vehicles Locations Trivia Goofs Notable Quotes Bengali: Bengali to Panthro. Do you read Panthro? (Panthro appears on the monitor laughing due to water from the Swamp of the Laughing Lilypads). Panthro: Yes, I read. Novels mostly! Media This episode was released on the following media: DVD * Season 2 Volume 2 DVD * Season 2 DVD * Seasons 1 & 2 DVD Episode Screenshots External Links *ThunderCats 1985 cartoon series on Wikipedia *Helpless Laughter on IMDb *ThunderCats on ThunderCats.org Category:Thundercats: 1980s TV episodes Category:Season 4 (ThunderCats 1980s) Category:ThunderCats episodes written by Matthew Malach